Wonderscape
Understanding the Seventeenth Amendment: Direct Election of Senators
Learn about the Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, ratified in 1913, which transformed the process of selecting senators to represent states in Congress. Explore the historical context, challenges with the previous...
Curated Video
Federal and State Powers
The U.S. Constitution divides power between the federal government and states, granting specific national powers and reserving others to states via the 10th Amendment, with federal laws generally overriding state laws.
Curated Video
Korematsu v. United States: Was Internment Legal?
Korematsu v. United States was a controversial U.S. Supreme Court decision made in the aftermath of the attack on Pearl Harbor. It established that the U.S. government could intern Japanese Americans during WWII as a result of Executive...
Curated Video
Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier: Free Speech in School
The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution protects the right to free speech. But when student journalists in Missouri wrote a series of articles on teen sex and divorce in 1983, their school appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court for the...
Wonderscape
Landmark Cases Defining the Bill of Rights
This video discusses key Supreme Court cases that have shaped the interpretation of the Bill of Rights in the U.S. It covers Gideon vs. Wainwright (6th Amendment), Miller vs. Alabama (8th Amendment), and Bond vs. United States (10th...
Wonderscape
Understanding the 8th Amendment: Rights Against Cruel Punishment
This video offers an in-depth explanation of the 8th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, focusing on its role in ensuring fair and humane treatment of individuals convicted of crimes. It covers the clauses on excessive bail, fines, and...
Wonderscape
The 7th Amendment Explained: Rights in Civil Cases
This video explains the 7th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, focusing on its role in safeguarding individual rights in civil court cases. It differentiates between criminal and civil cases, and discusses the historical context and...
Wonderscape
Understanding the Bill of Rights and the 6th Amendment
This video offers a comprehensive overview of the Bill of Rights and the 6th Amendment, explaining their significance in the U.S. legal system. It details the rights of the accused, including the right to a speedy trial, an impartial...
Wonderscape
The Fifth Amendment: Rights in Criminal Trials and Property Protection
Discover the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which provides crucial protections during criminal trials and safeguards individual property rights. Understand the concepts of grand jury indictment, double jeopardy,...
Wonderscape
The Third Amendment of the U.S. Constitution Explained
Discover the origins and significance of the Third Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which addresses the quartering of soldiers in private homes. Understand how this amendment was a reaction to the British Quartering Acts during the...
Wonderscape
Understanding the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution
Delve into the Second Amendment, which grants citizens the right to bear arms. Understand the historical context that influenced the Founding Fathers to include this right, reflecting on the colonial era's militia system and the measures...
Wonderscape
The Bill of Rights and the First Amendment Explained
Explore the significance of the Bill of Rights and the First Amendment in American history. Understand why these amendments were necessary for protecting individual freedoms and limiting government power. Learn about the rights enshrined...
Mr. Beat
When Does Speech Incite Violence? | Brandenburg v. Ohio
In episode 17 of Supreme Court Briefs, a KKK leader gets his hate rally on TV, and then promptly gets arrested. Wait a second, what about freedom of speech?
Mr. Beat
Bong Hits 4 Jesus? | Morse v. Frederick
In the fourth episode of Supreme Court Briefs, Mr. Beat goes back to 2002 to look at darn high schoolers causing mischief with a banner about marijuana. Is it their First Amendment right or are they disrupting school? Joseph Frederick, a...
Mr. Beat
Do Students Have Free Speech in School? | Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District
In episode 29 of Supreme Court Briefs, students protest the Vietnam War by wearing armbands to school. After some of them get suspended for doing so, the families sue the school district, arguing the students' First Amendment rights were...
Mr. Beat
Can Congress Have Term Limits? | U.S. Term Limits, Inc. v. Thornton
In episode 46 of Supreme Court Briefs, Arkansas tries to get rid of career politicians through indirect term limits. Yeah but is it legal?
Mr. Beat
What Does the Second Amendment REALLY Mean? | US v. Miller
In episode 34 of Supreme Court Briefs, state troopers find an illegal sawed-off shotgun in the car of two gangsters, which leads to the only Supreme Court case about the Second Amendment of the 20th century.
Mr. Beat
Do You Have the Right to Remain Silent? | Salinas v. Texas
In episode 33 of Supreme Court Briefs, police question a dude named Salinas about a murder, and they claim his silence made him seem guilty. He claims "the right to remain silent."
Mr. Beat
Can You Start a Bible Study Club at School? | Westside Community Board of Education v. Mergens
In episode 20 of Supreme Court Briefs, high school students want to start a Bible Study Club, but their principal won't let them, saying it breaks the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.
Mr. Beat
Protecting Whistleblowers | New York Times Co. v. United States
In episode 24 of Supreme Court Briefs, a man exposes dark government secrets about the Vietnam War, and gets in big trouble from the government for it. Should whistleblowers be protected?
Mr. Beat
Strengthening the Second Amendment | D.C. v. Heller
In episode 27 of Supreme Court Briefs, a gun ban in the District of Columbia gets challenged, and the Supreme Court seriously looks at the 2nd amendment for the first time in nearly 70 years.
Curated Video
Universal Suffrage
During the late 1800s and early 1900s, women suffragists were the catalysts for women’s reform and the ratification of the 19th Amendment, granting women the right to vote.
Curated Video
Liberties in the First Five Amendments
Liberties in the First Five Amendments clarifies how amendments protect individual rights against government interference by exploring amendments one through five of the Bill of Rights.
Curated Video
Bill of Rights Promises
"Bill of Rights Promises" explains how amendments protect individual rights from government interference by exploring amendments six through ten of the Bill of Rights.